The Twitter Lesson: No Business Plans Please — Seeing that Twitter closed a funding round, and spotting the associated incredulity about Evan's company not having a business plan, reminded me of something: Whatever your feelings about Twitter, business plans are overrated, and profits perhaps even more so.

Taking a bite out of the big apple — First, Twitter was a fun side project, then it was cared for lovingly at Obvious until it was time to form Twitter, Inc. Today, we're excited to announce an important moment for Twitter. We've raised funding from our friends in New York City at Union Square Ventures.

Twitter — The Internet is largely a communications medium. It's also used for content distribution, commerce, and a number of other things. But the thing I do most on the Internet is communicate. Via email, Skype, instant messaging, blogging, commenting, and twittering. It makes sense.

BBC online player launches — The BBC's flagship online TV service is being launched, offering viewers the chance to download their favourite programmes from the last seven days. — For director general Mark Thompson, the launch of iPlayer is as big a milestone as the arrival of colour TV.

Think You Might Be Addicted to Email? You're Not Alone — New AOL Survey Reveals that More Americans are Using Portable Devices to Email Around the Clock from Virtually Anywhere - in the Bathroom, While Driving and Even in Church — 83% of Email Users Checking on Vacation; Many Plan Getaways Around Access

VMware lands Cisco as investor — Cisco Systems said Friday it will invest $150 million in VMware, joining Intel as a strategic investor. — After the investment Cisco will own 1.6 percent of VMware's outstanding shares. VMware will also consider appointing a Cisco executive to its board in the future.

Google 'the most improved brand' — Google is the brand that has gained the most in value over the past year, according a survey of global brands. — The report from Interbrand found that Google's brand value had risen 44% in the past 12 months to $17.8bn (£8.8bn), which put it in 20th place.

Microsoft's forecast: cloudy — In a talk before Wall Street analysts yesterday, Microsoft's coder-in-chief, Ray Ozzie, described in broad strokes the software giant's plans to build its utility computing business as more and more computing functions and software applications turn …

Is Google on Crack? — This week I was supposed to explain why U.S. broadband prices are so much higher and U.S. broadband speeds are so much lower than in most other developed countries, but then Google made an unexpected reckless move in the wireless bandwidth market and here I am trying to explain it.

HBO comedy site shut down — This Just In offered celebrity riffs, comic videos — This Just In, the comedy site HBO envisioned as both a brand extension and a potential development pipeline, is being shut down just six months after launching. — Time Warner will unwind the venture …

What's Really Going On With Podtech? — There have been a number of reports that silicon valley based Podtech is literally falling apart. I spoke to Podtech CEO John Furrier and asked him how many of the rumors are true. While he certainly fed me a certain amount of spin, the company has at least a few signs of life.

TiVo's Catch-22 — TiVo's survival depends on cable. Cable has limited incentives to see it succeed. Does TiVo have a way out? — This week, the company that has amassed such powerful brand equity that it has become a verb ("Did you TiVo The Sopranos finale?") announced that it is working hard …

The Single Greatest Marketing Tool — Any entrepreneur can run a snazzy advertising campaign, if he or she is willing to pay for it. The trick is to get that kind of exposure without breaking the bank. — Such is the allure of "public relations"—the discipline of shedding a benevolent light …